Luke
Chapter 4
1 Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, came back from the Jordan River and was guided by the Spirit into the desert.
2 He was tempted by the devil for forty days. During that time, he ate nothing. After it ended, he felt hungry.
3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”
4 Jesus replied, “It is said, people do not live only by eating bread, but by every word from God.”
5 The devil took him to a high mountain and showed him all the world’s kingdoms in an instant.
6 The devil told him, “I will give you all this power and its glory because it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I choose.”
7 If you worship me, everything will be yours.
8 Jesus replied, “Go away from me, Satan, because it is said, ‘You must worship only God and serve him alone.’”
9 He took him to Jerusalem, put him on the highest point of the temple, and said, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here.”
10 It is written, God will command his angels to protect you.
11 They will carry you in their hands so that you won’t hit your foot on a stone.
12 Jesus replied, “It is written, ‘Do not test God.’”
13 After the devil finished all the tempting, he left him for a while.
14 Jesus came back to Galilee with the Spirit’s power, and news about him spread through the whole area.
15 He taught in their gathering places, and everyone praised him.
16 He went to Nazareth, where he grew up, and on the Sabbath, as he usually did, he entered the synagogue and stood up to read.
17 He received the book of the prophet Isaiah. When he opened the book, he found the section that said,
18 God’s Spirit is on me, because he has chosen me to tell good news to the poor; he has sent me to fix broken hearts, to say to the captives ‘You are free,’ and to help blind people see, to free those who have been hurt.
19 To announce God’s year of favor.
20 He closed the book, gave it back to the assistant, and sat down. Everyone in the synagogue stared at him.
21 He started to tell them, “Today, this scripture has come true as you heard it.”
22 Everyone listened to him and was amazed at the kind words he spoke. They asked, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”
23 He told them, “You will definitely tell me this saying, ‘Doctor, cure yourself:’ do here in your hometown what we heard you did in Capernaum.”
24 He said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is welcomed in his hometown.”
25 But I tell you truly, there were many widows in Israel during Elijah’s time, when the sky was closed for three and a half years and there was a severe famine everywhere in the country.
26 Elijah was not sent to any of them but to a widow in the city of Sarepta in Sidon.
27 Many people with leprosy lived in Israel when Elisha was a prophet; but only Naaman the Syrian was healed.
28 Everyone in the synagogue became very angry when they heard this.
29 They got up, pushed him out of the city, took him to the edge of the hill where their city was built, to throw him down.
30 He walked right through the crowd and went on his way.
31 He went down to Capernaum, a city in Galilee, and taught them on the Sabbath days.
32 They were amazed at his teaching, because his words had authority.
33 In the meeting place, there was a man with an evil spirit, and he shouted loudly.
34 Leave us alone; what do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are; the Holy One of God.
35 Jesus scolded the demon, saying, “Be quiet and leave him.” And after the demon threw the man down in front of everyone, it came out without injuring him.
36 Everyone was amazed and said to each other, “What kind of teaching is this? He gives orders to evil spirits with authority and power, and they leave.”
37 News about him spread all over the surrounding region.
38 He got up from the synagogue and went into Simon’s house. Simon’s mother-in-law had a high fever, and they asked him to help her.
39 He stood by her, told the fever to go away, and it did. Right away she got up and took care of them.
40 When the sun was going down, everyone with sick friends brought them to Jesus; he touched each one and healed them.
41 Evil spirits came out of many people, shouting, “You are the Christ, the Son of God.” But he scolded them and did not allow them to speak because they knew he was the Christ.
42 When day came, he left and went to a deserted place. The people looked for him, found him, and begged him not to leave them.
43 He told them, “I must tell other cities about God’s kingdom, too: that’s why I was sent.”
44 He taught in the meeting places of Galilee.